Bulgaria will be aiming to maintain their recent good form when they travel to the LFF Stadium for a 2022 World Cup qualifying Group C fixture against Lithuania. The Bulgarians have shown plenty of improvement in recent times and should have too much for Lithuania, who have been one of the worst teams in the qualifying series.
Lithuania continued their struggles in Group C with a 5-0 loss to Italy in their previous fixture. They were no match for the Italians, barely mustering any attacking threat and finishing with just a single attempt on target.
Valdas Ivanauskas' men have been one of the worst teams in the entire qualifying series and have lost all five of their matches in Group C. They also have the worst defence in the group with 13 goals conceded in just five matches.
Aside from their defensive problems, Lithuania have also found things difficult in attack with just one goal scored in five qualifiers.
Bulgaria were in fine form last time out in the qualifiers as they claimed a 4-1 victory over Georgia. They had four different goalscorers with Todor Nedelev, Dimitar Iliev, Spaz Delev and Andrea Hristov all getting on the score sheet.
After enduring a slow start to the qualifiers, Bulgaria seem to be finding their feet lately with a 1-1 draw against Italy appearing to spark a revival. Yasen Petrov's men have won their last two matches which has put them back in the mix for a playoff spot.
A more solid defensive setup seems to be at the heart of Bulgaria's recent rejuvenation. They were resolute at the back against the Italians and kept a clean sheet in the reverse fixture against Lithuania.
How the bookies view it
Bulgaria have the upper hand among the bookies at 66/67 with SBK while an unlikely victory for Lithuania is priced at 17/5 by betfair. Sport Nation is offering odds of 27/11 for a draw.
Head to head
Bulgaria have won the two previous matches against Lithuania and claimed a 1-0 victory in the reverse fixture back in March.
Players to watch
Spaz Delev and Dimitar Iliev have a solid partnership in attack for Bulgaria and both men were on target in the win over Georgia. Betfair has Delev at 5/2 to score anytime while Iliev is priced at 2/1 by Paddy Power in the same market.
Bulgaria have also looked solid at the back lately with Vasil Bozhikov and Petko Hristov partnering in central defence. They kept a clean sheet in the reverse fixture against Lithuania and could be set for a repeat at 6/5 with Paddy Power.
Anything else catch the eye?
Bulgaria have tightened up at the back in recent matches and with Lithuania struggling in attack, BTTS NO could be considered at 3/4 with BetVictor. The visitors are likely to earn a win to nil at 15/8 with Skybet.
Given Bulgaria's solid defence, they could also be tipped as the only team to score at 7/4 with bet365.
This World Cup match between Lithuania and Bulgaria will be played on Oct 9, 2021 and kick off at 14:00. Check below for our tipsters best Lithuania vs Bulgaria prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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